Packing ring and method of making the same



Apr. 3, 1923. WW8

J. B. WENZEL PACKING RING AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed NOV. 19,1920 ATTORNEYS Patented Apr. 3, 1923.

DUNN-BE STATES JACOB B. WENZEL, OF BLOOM, COLORADO.

PACKING RING AND METHOZO OF MAKING THE SAME.

Application filed November 19, 1920. Serial No. 425,095.

To all w/tom it may concern Be it known that I, JACOB B. WENZEL, acitizen of the United States, and a resident of Bloom, in the county ofOtero and State of Colorado, have invented new and useful Improvementsin Packing Rings and Methods of Making the Same, of which the followingis a specification.-

This invention relates to split packing 1 rings of the type havingsubstantially uniform cross-sectional dimensions.

The objects of the invention are to provide an improved packing ring ofthe character described having a substantially uniform tension orresiliency throughout its entire circumference; to produce such uniformtension by an improved method of densifying'the material of which theringis composed; to produce said tension by the formation ofindentations having irregular outlines or configurations differentportions of which densify the material in different lines; to form saidindentations with portions thereof enlarged and projecting laterallyupon opposite sides of the portions between said enlargements; totension the ring by ball-point indentations connected by lineindentations; to' form the-indentations of varying sizes by graduallydecreasing them in length transversely of the ring from the pointopposite the split of the ring.

toward the ends of the ring; and to obtain other results and advantagesas may bebrought out by the following description.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals ofreference indicate the same parts throughout the several views, Figure 1is a plan view of a packing ring embodying "my invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged development of one-half of the interior surfaceof the ring; Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 showing a modifiedform and arrangement of the indentations; Figure 4 is a similar view ofanother modification of the indentations;

Figure 5 is a similar view of a further modified indenting, and

Figure 6 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Figure2.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated by Figures 1 and 2 of thedrawings, the numeral 1 designates a ring body which is of substantiallyuniform cross-sectional a? area throughout, said ring being split at 2to allow expansion and contraction of the ring, and the ends of the ringbeing recessed or cut away at 3, 3 to make an overlapping joint as iscommon in blanks for piston rings. .To produce a uniform tension in thering so that the ring will remain circular upon any change in thediameter thereof, and so that tendency to return to normal size will beuniform all around the ring, the material of which the ring is formed isdistorted or its density variably changed by the forming of a pluralityof indentations 4 in a surface of the ring. The indentations shown in.Figures 1 and 2 comprise enlarged ball point or spot portions 5connected b narrower or line portions 6, all portions 0 the indentationsbeing confined within the edges ofthe ring. In the present instance aball point portion 5 is shown at each end of the indentations and one inthe center, so that the line portions do not intersect the edges of thering. These indentations may be formed by any suitable means, and thevariations in the density of the material may be produced by varying theintensity of the blow forming the indentations or varying the depth ofthe indentations, or by spacing the indentations different distancesapart. The indentations 4 are disposed'along the middle portion of thelength of the ring, that is equally upon opposite sides of a diametricline through the split 2, and I have found these indentations have theeffective characteristics of both the usual line indentations and ballpoint indentations. Furthermore, these indentations 4 terminate short ofthe edges of the ring so that the liability to cracking or breaking ofthe ring is reduced. The tendency of the ball point or spot indentationsis to density the material in directions radial 95 to'the center of theindentations, while the tendency of the line indentations is to densifythe material in lines substantially parallel to the indentations. Myimproved, method of densification thus produces a 1 through and uniformdensification of the -1ll2).t6lltll throughout the cross sectional areaof the ring.

The densifying effect of a ball point or spot indentations, spaced fromone another 1 as heretofore in the art, is greatly lessened by theundensified portions of the ring surface between the ball point or spotindentations, and it has therefore been necessary to make themcorrespondingly close together, 1 19 the ring; the combined efiect ofthe broad and narrow indentations seems to be to secure the neessarydensifying without the tendency to breakage which occurs with anindentation of uniform width.

A modified form of the invention is shown -by Figure 3 of the drawings,in which the material of the ring is variably densified from a pointdiametrically opposite .the

split toward the ends of the ring by improved means. The indentations 7may be formed by any suitable means and are all similar in shape andequidistantly spaced. Each of the indentations comprises a' ball pointportion 8 at each end, the said portions, 8 being preferably connectedby a line indentation 9, all portions of the'indentations being confinedwithin the edges of the ring. The indentations 7 decrease in length fromthe point diametrically opposite the split of the ring toward the endsthereof, so that each succeeding indentation toward the ends of the ringcovers a smaller area of the surface of the ring in which theindentations are formed. In the present instance it will be noted thatthe lengths of the indentations are varied by bringing the ball pointportions 8 closer together, thereby ,shortening the line indentations 9.It will thus be. seen that inasmuch as the areas coveredby theindentations 7 vary toward the ends of the ring, the amount ofdensitication of the material caused by each of the indentations willgradually vary so as to provide the proper tension in the ring to causeit to remain circular upon changes in its diameter, and so that thetendency to return to its normal size will be uniform throughout thecircumference of the ring.

A further modification of my invention is shown in Figure 4 of thedrawing in which the indentations 10 are line. indentations, the ballpoint portions above described being omitted, and the ends of theindentations terminating shortof the edges of the ring. The indentations10 gradually decrease in length from the point opposite the split and Vare preferably equidistantly spaced, the said" indentations beingcentrally disposed in the surface of the ring in which they are formed.This form of the invention produces substantially the same results asthe construe nesaeea tion shown in Figure 3, with the exception that theeffect of the ball point portion 8.

more and more closely, such a construction being illustrated in Figure 5of the drawin s.

i lt will be obvious that my improved method of manufacture may beapplied to the ring by any suitable nieans, and it will be understoodthat my invention is applicable to all packing rings without regard tothe direction in which the tension acts, and I do not desire to belimited in the use and application of my invention except as required bythe following claims when construed in the light of the prior art.

Having thus described the invention, what i claim as new is 1. A methodof tensioning packing rings,

consisting in densifying the material by line indentations intersectedby spot indentations.

2. A method of tensioning packin rings, consisting in densifying themateria by 00- operating line indentations and spot indentations.

3. A method of tensioning packing rings, consisting in densifying thematerial by transverse series of line indentations and spotindentations.

4. A method of tensioning packing rin s, consisting in densifying thematerial liy line indentations each having sppt indentations at itsends.

5. A method of bensioning packing rings, consisting in formingindentations of Irregular outline in a surface of said ring.

6. A method of tensioning packing rings, consisting in forming in asurface of the ring indentations each having varying dimensions.

7. A method oftensioning packing rings, consisting in forming in asurface of the ring indentations each comprising a plurality of spotindentations connected by line indentations.

8. A packing ring having at its surface a transversely alined spotindentation and line indentation.

9. A acking ring having in its surface a longitu inal series of equallyspaced transverse indentations varying in length.

10. A method of tcnsioning packing rings consisting in forming in asurface of the ring a series of transverse indentations equally s acedand varying in length longitudinalFy of the ring.

11. A method of tensioning packing rings consisting in forming in asurface in the ring indentations of varying lengths transversely of thering.

12, A method of tensioning packing rings consisting in formin in asurface in the ring indentations transverse to the ring with theirlengths gradually varying longitudinally of the ring.

13. A method of tensioning packing rings consisting in forming in asurface in the ring indentations gradually decreasing in length from apoint diametrically opposite the split in the ring toward its ends.

14. A packin ring having the material of which itis torrned densified inareas of irregular configuration.

15. A packing ring having the material of which it is formed densifiedin areas having varying dimensions.

16. A packing ring having the material of which it is formed densifiedin areas various portions of which are of different dimen- 810118.

17. A packing ring having formed in 'a as surface thereof opposite itssplit a plurality surface thereof 1ntermediate its ends a plurality ofindentations gradually decreasing in length from a point diametricallyopposite the split toward the en ds of the ring.

20. A packing ring'having formed in a surface thereof intermediate itsends a plurality of indentations gradually decreasing in lengthtransversely of the ring.

21. A packing ring having a series of indeiitations each comprising ballpoint portions connected by line portions.

JACQB B. WENZEL.

